Militarisation Series: Gaza Post-Ceasefire: Hopes & Challenges Ahead

12 March 2025

Join Aid/Watch with special guests as we look at how the temporary ceasefire in Gaza has brought brief hope and relief to Palestinians, offering a glimmer of peace and access to basic needs like food, medicine, and hygiene supplies.

However, our speakers will also highlight the ongoing injustices that Palestinians are facing. Questions linger about immediate recovery efforts, borders reopening and the Trump administration’s controversial proposal for Israel’s annexation over Gaza further complicates the situation, with dire human rights implications.

International aid remains critical in addressing the unprecedented humanitarian crisis in Gaza, where nearly 90% of homes are destroyed or damaged, displacing tens of thousands of people. While Australia has provided tourist visas to over 2,000 refugees from Gaza–is this enough? Securing long-term protection for Palestinians remains a pressing need. The region’s future also hinges on the ability to stop Israeli military actions and support Palestinian rights within international law.

For Aid/Watch the fight for Palestinian self-determination and justice continues to amplify global solidarity against Israeli imperialist policies. Australia’s foreign policy must shift away from military alliances with Israel and partners and must prioritise international law, human rights, and global solidarity to counter US-led militarism and advance Palestinian rights worldwide.

Guest Host

Lee Rhiannon: As a founding Director of AID/WATCH Lee Rhiannon has been well known for her environmental and social justice activism for over five decades. As a former Greens Senator, Lee represented the voice of communities in the Senate speaking up for public ownership, creating sustainable jobs for workers in coal-impacted communities, for a national anti-corruption watchdog and political donation reform, and many other causes. Lee continues to work closely with Palestinians, Kashmiris, Kurds and other communities struggling for self-determination, peace and justice in their home countries.

Guest Speakers

Ken Davis: Ken has been involved in international solidarity campaigns since 1972. Ken worked in HIV from 1983 to 1994, and began work on HIV and international trade unions with Union Aid Abroad – APHEDA in 1991. From 2001 to 2024 Ken worked on development projects with Palestinians in the occupied territories and in Beirut. ACFID gave Ken the Ron Wilson Human Rights Award in late 2024.

Ahmed Abadla: Ahmed is a Palestinian from Gaza and co-founder of the Palestine Justice Movement Sydney (PJM) which has been instrumental in raising awareness about Israel’s occupation and the ongoing genocide and injustices Palestinians face. Living in Australia for 16 years, Ahmed still has direct family links back home, especially in Khan Younis where he grew up.